Beer and wine distributor eyes Mills River site

Published: Tuesday, August 6, 2013 at 8:00 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, August 6, 2013 at 8:49 p.m.

A regional beer and wine distribution company is contemplating building a $20 million facility within Broadpointe Industrial Park in Mills River that would create 15 jobs and relocate its offices, warehouse and 92 employees from Arden.

Empire Distributors Inc. has maxed out its 60,000-square-foot office and warehouse facility at 10 Walden Drive, said Doug Rose, general manager of Empire Asheville, one of eight beverage distribution hubs the company owns throughout Georgia and North Carolina.

The company — which distributes 3,000 different wines and 500 beer products — expanded its Arden operations by 25,000 square feet about eight years ago, Rose said, but “it was pretty much full the day we did the expansion. It was sort of a Band-Aid.”

Rose said Empire has been searching for a larger warehouse to lease for about a year, “but we couldn’t find anything, so we’re going to build.” Besides Mills River, the company is considering other sites in the region for construction of a roughly 150,000-square-foot warehouse and 10,000 square feet of offices, he said.

The Mills River location near the intersection of Broadpointe Drive and Old Fanning Bridge Road makes sense for a variety of reasons, Rose said. It’s close to the airport and Interstate 26, with quick access to Interstate 40, and it’s near Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.’s new brewery across the river.

Empire distributes Sierra Nevada beers, along with Guinness, Genesee, Grolsch, Harp, Pyramid Ale, Samuel Adams, Sweetwater and other well-known brands. The company covers 27 counties in Western North Carolina, from the Tennessee border east to Hickory and north to the Virginia border.

“We would like to say that’s going to be the new location, but we haven’t nailed it down yet,” Rose said of the Broadpointe site. “Last night was a big step, though.”

On Monday evening, the Henderson County Board of Commissioners held a public hearing about a possible incentives package for Empire. No one spoke except Andrew Tate, president of Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development. He said the county is contemplating an incentives package worth $479,060 over a maximum period of seven years, with a potential first-year grant of $71,904.

The incentives are “not a tax cut,” Tate said Tuesday. Rather, he said the county is anticipating what tax revenues would be derived from the company’s investment in real and personal property and granting back 70 percent, “provided they meet the performance thresholds for employment, investment and wages.”

Tate said the average yearly wage for the 15 new jobs would be $40,000, about $7,500 more than the average county wage for full-time employment.

As proposed, Empire would invest $17 million in real property, excluding land acquisition, and $3 million in equipment. Rose said the bulk of the personal property investment will be for a new conveyor and racking system, which is “much more advanced” than the company’s current one.

Mills River Town Council will take up its own potential incentives package, worth as much as $20,890 over seven years, at a public hearing at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29.

“What incentives, how much and how long we offer them, that will be up to councilmembers,” said Mayor Roger Snyder. “Overall, I think Empire would be a good fit for Mills River. From our perspective, we’re getting revenue off vacant land, so it’ll help our tax base. Once they get going, I think they’ll be a real asset to the community.”

If Empire does choose to build in Mills River, Snyder said the town will have to work with the N.C. Department of Transportation and Empire to make sure Broadpointe Drive is fully paved so construction traffic and delivery trucks have an alternative to using Old Fanning Bridge Road.

Currently, part of Broadpointe Drive is gravel north of label manufacturer UPM Raflatac. Paving the road throughout its length would allow Empire trucks the option of accessing U.S. Highway 280 instead of using Old Fanning Bridge, Snyder said.

Old Fanning Bridge Road has been improved to help service the Sierra Nevada plant across the river, Snyder said, but “going toward 191, it’s residential. I want to make sure we keep the residential traffic and the industrial traffic separate as much as possible.”

<p>A regional beer and wine distribution company is contemplating building a $20 million facility within Broadpointe Industrial Park in Mills River that would create 15 jobs and relocate its offices, warehouse and 92 employees from Arden. </p><p>Empire Distributors Inc. has maxed out its 60,000-square-foot office and warehouse facility at 10 Walden Drive, said Doug Rose, general manager of Empire Asheville, one of eight beverage distribution hubs the company owns throughout Georgia and North Carolina.</p><p>The company — which distributes 3,000 different wines and 500 beer products — expanded its Arden operations by 25,000 square feet about eight years ago, Rose said, but “it was pretty much full the day we did the expansion. It was sort of a Band-Aid.”</p><p>Rose said Empire has been searching for a larger warehouse to lease for about a year, “but we couldn't find anything, so we're going to build.” Besides Mills River, the company is considering other sites in the region for construction of a roughly 150,000-square-foot warehouse and 10,000 square feet of offices, he said.</p><p>The Mills River location near the intersection of Broadpointe Drive and Old Fanning Bridge Road makes sense for a variety of reasons, Rose said. It's close to the airport and Interstate 26, with quick access to Interstate 40, and it's near Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.'s new brewery across the river.</p><p>Empire distributes Sierra Nevada beers, along with Guinness, Genesee, Grolsch, Harp, Pyramid Ale, Samuel Adams, Sweetwater and other well-known brands. The company covers 27 counties in Western North Carolina, from the Tennessee border east to Hickory and north to the Virginia border.</p><p>“We would like to say that's going to be the new location, but we haven't nailed it down yet,” Rose said of the Broadpointe site. “Last night was a big step, though.”</p><p>On Monday evening, the Henderson County Board of Commissioners held a public hearing about a possible incentives package for Empire. No one spoke except Andrew Tate, president of Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development. He said the county is contemplating an incentives package worth $479,060 over a maximum period of seven years, with a potential first-year grant of $71,904.</p><p>The incentives are “not a tax cut,” Tate said Tuesday. Rather, he said the county is anticipating what tax revenues would be derived from the company's investment in real and personal property and granting back 70 percent, “provided they meet the performance thresholds for employment, investment and wages.”</p><p>Tate said the average yearly wage for the 15 new jobs would be $40,000, about $7,500 more than the average county wage for full-time employment.</p><p>As proposed, Empire would invest $17 million in real property, excluding land acquisition, and $3 million in equipment. Rose said the bulk of the personal property investment will be for a new conveyor and racking system, which is “much more advanced” than the company's current one.</p><p>Mills River Town Council will take up its own potential incentives package, worth as much as $20,890 over seven years, at a public hearing at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29. </p><p>“What incentives, how much and how long we offer them, that will be up to councilmembers,” said Mayor Roger Snyder. “Overall, I think Empire would be a good fit for Mills River. From our perspective, we're getting revenue off vacant land, so it'll help our tax base. Once they get going, I think they'll be a real asset to the community.”</p><p>If Empire does choose to build in Mills River, Snyder said the town will have to work with the N.C. Department of Transportation and Empire to make sure Broadpointe Drive is fully paved so construction traffic and delivery trucks have an alternative to using Old Fanning Bridge Road. </p><p>Currently, part of Broadpointe Drive is gravel north of label manufacturer UPM Raflatac. Paving the road throughout its length would allow Empire trucks the option of accessing U.S. Highway 280 instead of using Old Fanning Bridge, Snyder said.</p><p>Old Fanning Bridge Road has been improved to help service the Sierra Nevada plant across the river, Snyder said, but “going toward 191, it's residential. I want to make sure we keep the residential traffic and the industrial traffic separate as much as possible.”</p><p>Reach Axtell at 828-694-7860 or than.axtell@blueridgenow.com.</p>